It’s scary to think that world class players such as UEFA Champion’s League Winners Javi Martinez, Fernando Torres, Juan Mata and David Villa all comprise Spain’s so called “B Team”. But even Spain’s U-21 Champions would be heavily favored against Confederation Cup darlings, and minnows Tahiti. Two questions arise for today’s matchup; how many will Spain win by? And does Spain ever let the foot off the gas?

In other words, do you respect your opponents by playing hard and honest for 90 minutes, even if that means that the amateur Tahitians let in 20 goals? Or do you honor your opponents and keep the score line low? [Read more…]

It was very frustrating watching yesterday’s game between Mexico and the United States. One team was playing to win and one team was playing not to lose. Mexico came out attacking and had several chances to put the match away. The US meanwhile showed up to defend, dropping as many as nine players in there half to contain the Mexican forwards.

After the first five minutes, it became apparent that the US was playing for the draw. They would do whatever it took to come away with the point, even if it meant playing an ugly and defensive football.

The US got they came for, a vital point at the difficult Azteca Stadium. Mexico on the other hand, now finds itself out of the qualification zone for Brazil 2014 with only three points from three matches.

My friend and co-worker Andy Ellwood joined me for the game. We discussed the strategy and style of play. Andy isn’t a soccer fan per say, but he is a hustler so he knows a thing or two about tactics and winning. Our conversation about soccer eventually tuned into a conversation about business, as the two sometimes parallel one another.